RECOMENDED READING: “What’s Driving Qatar’s Foreign Policy?”

The Voice of America has posted an article that discusses the role of the Muslim Brotherhood in driving Qatari foreign policy. The article begins:

From the art world to the airline industry and on to the United Nations, the tiny Gulf nation of Qatar has been leaving a big footprint wherever it goes. This week, Qatar Airways announced it will partner with American and British Airways, giving them access to vast new markets in India and Asia. Qatar has been investing millions of Euros in European banks, real estate, fine art and football clubs and will host the 2022 FIFA World Cup?all this while providing considerable financial support to the countries of the Arab Spring. All in all, Qatar’s investments across the globe are estimated at about $60 billion. So what is Qatar up to? Is it just looking for sensible ways to invest its money? Or, is Qatar trying, as one commentator told VOA – only slightly in jest – to become the world’s next “superpower?”

Spreading the wealth

The Qatar Investment Authority has spent more than $4.3 billion this year on eight deals in Europe, including a shopping mall on the Champs Elysees in Paris, the London Olympic athletes village and the Italian fashion house, Valentino. It has invested in some of France’s top companies?Louis Vuitton, TOTAL, and the Carlton Hotel in Cannes.

A post from August reported on the plans for an Egypt-Qatar summit where the Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi was to receive the Emir of Qatar. AP had reported earlier that Qatar was granting Egypt a $2 billion loan to help the country’s troubled economy.

A post from March reported that the Deputy Chairman of the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood was visiting Qatar for meetings with Qatari official. An earlier post discussed the relocation of Hamas political leader Khaled Mashaal from Syria to Qatar in yet another sign of the country growing importance as a center of the Global Muslim Brotherhood. A series of recent and important Global Muslim Brotherhood events have been held in Qatar illustrating the increasing importance of the country to the Global Brotherhood.

The Atlantic Council Web site recently posted an article titled “Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood: Between a Present with Qatar and a Future with Libya” that discusses the future of Qatari-Egyptian relations in light of the failure of the Libyan Muslim Brotherhood to prevail in recent elections.